My testing of my M2s & 2 EP400s continues with a couple more TELARC vintage CDs from the 1980s. Both recordings are not manipulated in any way - a rarity now - & my system handled everything beautifully.

From 1983 - 'Battle Music of Beethoven & Liszt' - 'Wellington's Victory' followed by 'Battle of the Huns' & 'Hungarian March to the Assault'. 'W's Victory' is the standout here as TELARC recorded vintage muskets & field cannons from the period - 188 shots included. The volleys & cannon shots are inserted exactly where Beethoven placed them in the score with the British being in the left channel & the French on the right. I believe that this might be one of the few recordings that have separate bass channels - the separation was much better now than when I ran 1 sub. As the battle progresses, the right channel shots become fewer until only the British are still firing from the left as the composer intended. BE CAREFUL initially with this one as your woofers might be coughed out onto the floor on the cannon shots. Very impressive indeed.

From 1985 - another pure recording - 'Bachbusters' - all done on period synthesizers by Don Dorsey. Purists probably would cringe hearing Bach on an electronic instrument; however, I found that it was very pleasurable & fun. It is excellently recorded, very dynamic with some shots of synth bass that are unexpected & impressive. In fact, my cat that was napping on my lap jumped up from a dead sleep on one hit with me close behind, ha!... Again BE CAREFUL initially.

I'm amazed at how these CDs from so long ago are still in pristine condition with absolutely no deterioration of their sound or playability. It still is a great medium IMHO...

Not listening to it yet - don't see it listed on Amazon - but I'm excited at the news that Rush's Vapor Trails has been remixed. Hopefully they addressed the compression issues that made it pretty much unlistenable for many of us.

Edit - I see that the release date for this is 10-1-13 via this linky.

Speaking of Rush, I had the pleasure of seeing them in concert last Friday in Vancouver on the Clockwork Angels tour. They continue to raise the bar in performance and presentation over a 3 hour show. The Clockwork Angels material was stellar

I saw the Clockwork Angels tour quiet a few months ago. It truly is one of the best concerts you can see in terms of the perfect balance between production and enjoying the music. The added "show" (used very generically to summarize, well, everything) is perfect for the theme but never overwhelms the most important part, the music.

All that said, it's rock, so I'm over analyzing. In short, it's F__ing AWESOME!!!!

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With great power comes Awesome irresponsibility.